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Senior Citizen Statistics
Boomers May Feel Burdened by Aging Parents but
Seniors See it Differently
Assisting
children doesn't end with empty nest –
or even when you retire
August 18, 2006 – There are many articles and
studies showing how Baby Boomers are burdened by their aging parents.
There is, however, a flip-side to this. Senior citizens are finding that
providing assistance to their children doesn’t end when they leave the
nest – or even when you retire.
While seniors appear optimistic about retirement
and the care options available to them, they seem to focus primarily on
their adult children.
Nearly half (46%) of the seniors surveyed provide
some form of assistance to their adult children. The most common form is
babysitting (18%), yet 13% provide financial support and some report
they haven’t emptied the nest, with 11% indicating they have adult
children still at home.
“Despite all the talk about baby boomers squeezed
between their parents and their children’s needs, seniors we surveyed
indicate they haven’t retired from parenting and remained focused on
aiding their adult children,” said James Mahoney, CEO of Financial
Freedom. “80% don’t expect to be a financial burden on their children
and 42% expect to leave their home to their kids.”
This is all according to seniors who participated
in the third annual Financial Freedom Senior Sentiment Survey from
Financial Freedom, a subsidiary of IndyMac Bank F.S.B., and the nation’s
largest originator of reverse mortgages.
The Senior Sentiment Survey measured the opinions
of 1,063 “young seniors” aged, 62-75 on a variety of topics from
retirement planning to family affairs to general quality of life issues.
Optimistic About Retirement
The majority of seniors does not plan to (or does
not currently) supplement their income by means other than social
security, pensions, and savings (60%). In spite of this, the great
majority (71%) does not plan to (or does not currently) have debt in
retirement – suggesting that seniors expect that their saving efforts
and social security are sufficient to prevent debt. In addition, 63%
consider their home among their retirement assets yet 42% intend to
leave their home to their heirs and 31% still carry a mortgage on their
home.
In addition:
● 10% indicated that they support their children
by letting them live in their home; of those children, 49% are at least
36 years old.
● 72% of seniors indicated that children living
with them do help out financially, with 49% contributing to household
utilities and 43% helping with food. 20% reported that their children
contribute rent (16%) or assist with the mortgage (4%).
● When asked for issues they are concerned about
or want more information about, 21% indicated “navigating health care,
especially Medicare”
● 55% believe that care options for the aging are
better for them than what was available for their parents
● 73% think their children will give them the
same care they gave their own parents
The majority of participants (74%) were retired and
split 57% female/43% male.
Notes:
About Financial Freedom
Financial Freedom originated over $2.9 billion in
loan fundings on $9.1 billion in home value in reverse mortgages in 2005
and is now the largest servicer of reverse mortgages with a servicing
portfolio of approximately 77,000 loans.
Financial Freedom is a founding member of the
National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association. NRMLA is a nonprofit
trade association, based in Washington, DC, whose mission is to support
the continued evolution of reverse mortgages as an important financial
option for senior homeowners while educating both its members and
consumers about the varied applications of this unique loan. For more
information, visit the Financial Freedom Web site at
www.financialfreedom.com.
About IndyMac Bancorp, Inc.
IndyMac Bancorp, Inc. is the holding company for
IndyMac Bank, the largest savings and loan in Los Angeles and the 7th
largest nationwide (based on assets). For more information about IndyMac
and its affiliates, or to subscribe to the Company’s Email Alert feature
for notification on company news and events, please visit our Website at
www.indymacbank.com.
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